6
The Formula
Earth gets its price for what Earth gives us,
The beggar is taxed for a corner to die in,
The priest hath his fee who comes and shrives us,
We bargain for the graves we lie in;
At the devil's booth are all things sold,
Each ounce of dross costs its ounce of gold;
For a cap and bells our lives we pay.
Bubbles we buy with a whole soul's tasking,
'Tis heaven alone that is given away,
'Tis only God may be had for the asking,
No price is set on the lavish summer;
June may be had by the poorest comer.
—James Russell Lowell, The Vision of Sir Launfal, 1848
What happens when we scoop away and flush the gunk of victimhood built up inside us?
We feel empowered.
We feel a profound shift from helplessness to grounding. Control of our destinies rescued from the thousand slave drivers we gave our power to.
It is uncomfortable to accept that we have been living as victims for years on end. No one likes opening their eyes and acknowledging how much of ourselves we've given up. It can be incredibly uncomfortable to finally see how deep the victim mentality has permeated every aspect of our lives.
Yet, the moment we take responsibility, the edge of this discomfort is blunted, as we become empowered, and we see a new realm of possibility.
We now have the power to discover, admit to, or transform. .. our mission.
We've touched on passion, purpose, and mission. It's important to understand them.
- Passion is a deep love of something, or a profound desire.
- Purpose is a goal, an aim, (and sometimes, but not always, it is the reason for our existence.)
- Mission is a profound purpose accompanied by a passion. It is our calling. Our vocation. It's what we do.
- Passion + Purpose = Mission
That word—mission—is intimidating. What kinds of things does the concept of a mission bring to mind? In a movie, the mission is to save the world from the bad guy. For a real-life mission we might think of a very worthy cause, like rebuilding homes in an area destroyed by a hurricane, getting people to Mars, or finding a cure for cancer.
Big things. Overwhelming things. Things that boggle the mind.
We must realize that these types of big-picture missions are executed through combining thousands, if not millions, of people who are on their own, much smaller, specific missions. No single person will be responsible for curing cancer. The cure will result from a culmination of countless studies, inventions, research, and trial and error, all happening around the world.
Eventually a cure will come to be, and while one group may be credited with a definitive discovery, humanity will have all those to thank who were working toward this momentous goal.
The truth is that mission, on the scale of an individual, can be something incredibly simple, and it begins with a passion.
Passion
This is the place in ourselves where the Awakened Millionaire is born.
Passion is easy. It's something we love. We love to do it. We love to study it. We love to think about it. We love to talk about it.
When someone brings it up at a gathering, we feel like we've finally found someone to have a real conversation with. We bond with others over mutual passions. Sometimes forging that connection is how we find our best friends, or significant others.
Our passion makes us happy.
Our passion thrills us.
A passion can be fixing cars. Cooking delicious meals. Tinkering with electronics. Making ceramics. Playing golf. Healing through touch. Plumbing. Taxi driving. Tasting beer from all over the globe. Trailblazing around the world. Cats. Dogs. Lizards. Pink flamingos. Lawn ornaments. Castles of Ireland. English gardens. Jumping out of airplanes. Flying airplanes. Flying remote control airplanes. Flying cars. Strongman training. Marathons. Scrapbooks. Books. Apps. Cooking. Magic tricks. Meditation.
Anything goes. Everything counts. Passion is immune to judgment. And any passion, with creative thought, can be turned into profit.
No one can look down on our passions. They are ours, and ours alone. They come from deep within us, and for reasons only we can understand.
We must embrace our passion. We must announce it proudly. Wear t-shirts about it!
Passion is what carries the Awakened Millionaire along through every step of a mission with sheer joy, excitement, and enthusiasm. Without passion, there is no mission, no journey. There is no purpose without passion.
Purpose
Every passion reveals a problem. When we love something, we want to understand it inside and out. Inevitably, we discover one of the following about our passion:
It's missing something. No book on a particular type of [x]. There needs to be a website about [x]. Couldn't there be an attachment to [x] that would do [y]? I've always wished for [x]. I can't find any information about [x].
It has a flaw, or a weakness. This could be improved upon. It could be better. It's too slow. It's too fast. It's too difficult. It's too easy. It is stagnant. There have been no recent innovations on [x]. [X] needs a revival.
Purpose is often born of these problems. For every problem there is a solution. It all begins with this simple question: What if?
“What if?” is a powerful question when asked in the right way. Most people use it to play out negative scenarios in their head: What if I fail? What if my idea bombs? What if I can't do it? What if I'm the exception to the rule?
Mindy Audlin, author of What If It All Goes Right?, calls those what if down questions. What you want to ask are what if up questions: What if I succeed? What if my idea is the winner? What if my next steps are the celebration turning points of my life?
What-if questions can be used to create solutions. Not Impossible, a book by Mick Ebeling, chronicles the inspiring stories of how he created solutions in record time by saying he would find a way, when none existed. He's famous for creating prosthetic hands for war victims by making the limbs out of a 3-D printer.
When Mitch Van Dusen and I would meet and discuss the Awakened Manifesto ideas, we what if upped ourselves into creating a movement and a mission. Our work became more than a book or an online product; it became a driving, passionate, all-fiery, inspiring movement.
All because we asked what if questions and the sister to it, “What would be better?”
Each of these what if questions represents a goal born from a passion. Each has been brought into reality. Each one, no matter how small, simple, or big, has changed the world forever, and each one will be built upon for future generations. That's how a mission is created.
A mission brings about positive change through a singular goal, fueled by passion.
The Awakened Millionaire has a mission fueled by passion.
Your mission is yours and unique to you. It could be to be the best mother to your kids, to be the best plumber in your city, to open a business that transforms lives, to market an invention that cleans water, turns solar energy into automotive fuel, or anything else. It is yours and yours alone.
Your mission is fueled by your passion. Whatever it is that you love, that you care about, is what you morph into your mission. As you read these words and meditate on your life, it will all become clear.
Onward.